In honor of St. Patrick's Day, I wanted to share some tips on how to photograph a parade. If taking photos at a parade is in your (near) future then be sure to keep reading this blog post... and depending on your enthusiasm for this holiday, you may want to pin a green piece of fabric to your camera strap.
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| Chernin, Stephen, Bagpipers March in NYC's St. Patrick's Day Parade, 2008. |
1. "Location": Be sure to get to the parade early so you can scope out a good spot to shoot your photographs from. Not only will you want to be at the front of the line to get a good shot but you will also want to consider your lighting. Avoid placing yourself in a location where the dancers, floats, bands, signs and other activity will pass by your lens half in sunshine and half in shade. Most parades take place in the middle of the day - when the sun is high in the sky - hard light is inevitable so it's best to prepare for it.
2. "Move Around": If the location that you scouted out isn't working out, use your feet to bring you to a new location. The key thing to remember about a parade is simply: the attraction moves so you will also want to move with it. By moving around, you're also able to get closer to those in the parade. Let the people you're photographing actually see you taking pictures verses sneaking the shots. Those who will see you taking pictures might interact with the camera: strike a pose or give a big smile.
3. "Backstage": All of the action at a parade is rarely just the parade. Be sure to also capture the folks watching the parade. Given that you'll be arriving early, you might want to try and get backstage to photograph the band waiting to play, the dancers suiting up or any kiosks that may have popped up. This is where your Student ID would come in handy; you'd be amazed what can come of a simple and polite statement such as, "Hi, my name is _______ and I'm a student at AiP Online. I'm working on a school project; do you mind if I take a few photos?".
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| MacDiarmid, Peter, An Entertainer Dressed as St. Patrick' Performs in a St. Patrick's Day Parade in London, 2005. |
4. "Back-Light": As mentioned above, hard lighting is inevitable when photographing a parade. Try to place the sun behind your subjects and then expose your camera so your main subjects are exposed properly. The background will be overexposed and create a "light rim" around your subjects.
5. "Telephoto Lens": Parades happen in layers. The band might follow the dancers; the dancers may follow the floats, then the banners... Although regardless of the order of the attractions, one thing is certain: you will not have a clear background and inevitably, you may have distracting objects in your view. The use of a telephoto lens will allow you to zoom in on your subject(s), focus on that subject(s) which will then blur the background; your viewer's eye will go right to your main subject.
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| From Eyevine, People March During the St. Patrick's Day Parade in New York, ND. |
6. "Tell a Story": When photographing a parade, take more than one or two shots of each attraction; take four or five or more! By moving around to follow your subjects and taking multiple photos, you'll have a) more options to choose a "top" photo and b) photos to display together to tell a brief story of that moment.
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01. Hildebrandt, Darlene. "6 Tips for Getting Better Parade Photos." Digital Photography School. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.
02. Roach, John. "St. Patrick's Day 2012: Facts, Myths, and Traditions." National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 16 Mar. 2012. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.
03. Bagpipers March in NYC's St. Patrick's Day Parade. 2008. National Geographic. Ed. Stephen Chernin. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.
04. "Grand St. Patrick's Day Celebrations." National Geographic. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2014.